What is the best website to check your personal credit report for free?
You can check your credit score by requesting a free copy of your credit report by going to www.AnnualCreditReport.com or by calling 1-877-322-8228.
Credit Karma is one of the most popular sites in the free credit score market. Users get two free scores and reports, and the site offers additional calculators and educational tools. Credit Karma also offers daily score updates.
You have the right to request one free copy of your credit report each year from each of the three major consumer reporting companies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) by visiting AnnualCreditReport.com. You may also be able to view free reports more frequently online.
AnnualCreditReport.com is the official site to get your free annual credit reports. This right is guaranteed by Federal law. You can verify this is the official site by visiting the CFPB's website. Don't be fooled by look-alike sites.
Is AnnualCreditReport.com safe? AnnualCreditReport.com is authorized by federal law and safe to use — as long as you ensure you're on the correct site. Double-check the URL when you type it, to be sure you have not made a typo.
Other services offer scores for purchase. For example, you can buy your FICO credit score at myfico.com . Many services provide scores as part of a subscription package that includes credit monitoring, identity protection, or other services, for a monthly fee.
| Website | Update Frequency |
|---|---|
| Credit Karma | Daily |
| Credit Sesame | Daily |
| Credit.com | Monthly |
| AnnualCreditReport.com | Weekly |
If your bank, credit card issuer, auto lender or mortgage servicer participates in FICO ® Score Open Access, you can see your FICO ® Scores, along with the top factors affecting your scores, for free.
You can request annual credit reports for free from each of the 3 major reporting agencies—Experian, Equifax® and TransUnion®—online via www.annualcreditreport.com or by calling 1-877-322-8228.
Millions of people use Credit Karma to track their credit scores. The company is highly transparent and provides its services through VantageScore. Thus, it offers a reliable snapshot of your current credit status. You can also use Credit Karma to spot inaccuracies in your credit report.
What are the 3 big things you must look for when reviewing your credit report?
- Errors made to your identity information (wrong name, phone number, address)
- Accounts belonging to another person with the same or a similar name as yours (mixing two consumers' information in a single file is called a mixed file)
- Incorrect accounts resulting from identity theft.
Although ranges vary depending on the credit scoring model, generally credit scores from 580 to 669 are considered fair; 670 to 739 are considered good; 740 to 799 are considered very good; and 800 and up are considered excellent.
Visit AnnualCreditReport.com to request free copies of your credit reports. Other sites may charge you or be fraudulent sites set up to steal your personal information. By law, everyone is entitled to one free credit report every twelve months from each of the three credit reporting agencies.
Can AnnualCreditReport.com Be Hacked? While AnnualCreditReport.com takes steps to keep its site secure, hypothetically, your credit report could be accessed if an impersonator had enough of your personal information. That's what happened in an incident in 2013.
No. Pulling your own credit report is referred to as a "soft inquiry". Soft inquiries don't impact your credit score.
Download the free Experian app
View your Experian credit report and FICO® Score* any time, anywhere on your phone. Credit score calculated based on FICO® Score 8 model. Your lender or insurer may use a different FICO® Score than FICO® Score 8, or another type of credit score altogether.
Generally speaking, you'll likely need a score of at least 620 — what's classified as a “fair” rating — to qualify with most lenders. With a Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loan, though, you might be able to get approved with a score as low as 500.
| Average FICO 8 Score by Generation | ||
|---|---|---|
| Generation | 2022 | 2023 |
| Generation Z (ages 18-26) | 679 - Good | 680 - Good |
| Millennials (27-42) | 687 - Good | 690 - Good |
| Generation X (43-58) | 707 - Good | 709 - Good |
It's recommended you have a credit score of 620 or higher when you apply for a conventional loan. If your score is below 620, lenders either won't be able to approve your loan or may be required to offer you a higher interest rate, which can result in higher monthly mortgage payments.
| Free credit score service | Who gets access | |
|---|---|---|
| Citi | Equifax FICO score | Citi cardholders |
| Discover | TransUnion FICO score | Anyone who creates a free account |
| US Bank | TransUnion Credit View (VantageScore 3.0) | US Bank customers |
| Wells Fargo | Experian FICO score | Wells Fargo customers |
How do I check myFICO score without hurting my credit?
Checking your own credit report or score won't affect your credit scores. It's an example of a soft inquiry—a request for credit info that does not affect credit scores. Experian, TransUnion and Equifax now offer all U.S. consumers free weekly credit reports through AnnualCreditReport.com.
As someone with a 650 credit score, you are firmly in the “fair” territory of credit. You can usually qualify for financial products like a mortgage or car loan, but you will likely pay higher interest rates than someone with a better credit score. The "good" credit range starts at 690.
Your FICO Score is a credit score. But if your FICO score is different from another of your credit scores, it may be that the score you're viewing was calculated using one of the other scoring models that exist.
In September 2022, the FTC announced an enforcement action against Credit Karma, alleging that the company used claims that consumers were “pre-approved” for a credit card or had “90% odds” of approval to entice them to apply for offers that, in many instances, they did not qualify for.
This is because Credit Karma makes use of another credit scoring model compared to many lenders and possibly does not have access to all the data required to calculate your credit score. Furthermore, credit ratings from various sources can differ due to dissimilarities in the data used for their computation.
References
- https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2023/10/you-now-have-permanent-access-free-weekly-credit-reports
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/finance/how-to-use-annualcreditreport-com
- https://www.thebalancemoney.com/is-using-annualcreditreport-com-safe-4705451
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/103015/are-credit-karma-scores-real-and-accurate.asp
- https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-are-common-credit-report-errors-that-i-should-look-for-on-my-credit-report-en-313/
- https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/ordering-your-own-credit-report-wont-hurt-your-credit-scores/
- https://wallethub.com/best-credit-report-site
- https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/what-credit-score-do-you-need-to-buy-a-house/
- https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2023/12/ftc-announces-claims-process-consumers-harmed-credit-karma-pre-approved-offers-which-they-were
- https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/where-can-i-get-my-credit-scores-en-316/
- https://www.ficoscore.com/where-to-get-fico-scores
- https://www.annualcreditreport.com/aboutThisSite.action
- https://www.equifax.com/personal/education/credit/score/articles/-/learn/what-is-a-good-credit-score/
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/finance/650-credit-score-good-or-bad
- https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/how-do-i-get-a-free-copy-of-my-credit-reports-en-5/
- https://www.freecreditreport.com/faqs
- https://www.rocketmortgage.com/learn/what-credit-score-is-needed-to-buy-a-house
- https://wallethub.com/best-credit-score-site
- https://www.experian.com/consumer-products/free-credit-report.html
- https://www.creditkarma.com/credit-cards/i/fico-score-vs-credit-score
- https://lbcmortgage.com/why-your-credit-karma-score-may-not-match-your-actual-credit-score/
- https://www.experian.com/credit/experian-app/
- https://www.investopedia.com/average-credit-scores-by-age-5214511
- https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/credit-cards-that-offer-free-credit-score
